JoAnn Shade: Gathering together with family is true Thanksgiving tradition

Wednesday

Nov 23, 2011 at 5:07 AM

While I don't remember watching television a great deal as a child (I tended to have my nose in a book instead), we always tuned into Captain Kangaroo to greet the morning on Thanksgiving.

After all the Ping-Pong balls fell from the sky and Bunny Rabbit got his laugh for the day, it was time to bring in the turkey. Did the characters sing, or did the Captain put on a record? I can't remember, but the arrival of the bird was always accompanied by "We gather together to ask the Lord's blessing." As Captain Kangaroo welcomed his extended family to the table, we knew it was time for Thanksgiving.

Thanksgiving. Time for the parades broadcast from New York City, Philadelphia and Detroit. Time for the Detroit Lions (early game) and the Dallas Cowboys (after the turkey, if we planned just right). Time for the cranberry sauce (does anybody really eat that?) and the pumpkin pie.

My childhood experience of holidays included groaning tables surrounded by lots of cousins, aunts and uncles, and was marked by impassioned discussions about politics and football. Would I ever get to sit at the "real" table, or would I forever be banished to the card tables on Aunt Florence's sun porch?

By the time I reached adulthood, life had changed, and my own Thanksgiving Day experience no longer included the extended family. I missed it, but our Salvation Army work required bell-ringing supervision on Wednesday and Black Friday that made the 8-hour trip home out of the question. We've shared our table with many guests over the years, but it's never been quite the same.

In attempting to create our own family traditions, we took our kids to the Thanksgiving Day parade in Philadelphia -- once. The memories are hazy, but since it didn't become a family tradition during our years in the City of Brotherly Love, I'm guessing the ambiance of the parade wasn't enough to overcome the "where do we park," "where's the bathroom" and "is it over yet" comments that tend to accompany my more adventuresome ideas. I really did think it would be fun. ...

Fast forward to Thanksgiving 2011. Bob Keeshan and his avuncular character of the Captain are long gone, as are Mr. Greenjeans and Mr. Moose. The Lions and Cowboys play on, but Barry Sanders and Roger Staubach are now watching from their easy chairs. The Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade is intact, but the Philadelphia parade's sponsorship has shifted from the now-liquidated Gimbels (1920-87) to Dunkin' Donuts and 6abc (with Boscovs and IKEA in the middle). Detroit's famous Hudson parade is now dubbed America's Thanksgiving Parade (their trademarked title). Some chairs around the table are empty, while we dust off the highchairs for a new generation of turkey-eaters. We remember and we create new memories.

Hanging on in my heart is that early memory from Captain Kangaroo's table, the Netherlands Folk Hymn. Written in 1597, long before any turkey was basted in America, it was an ode to the victory of war and the provision of God to the victors.

Why the entire hymn became a Thanksgiving tradition is a mystery, but perhaps it's summed up in its first three words: "We gather together." Whether at the Thanksgiving feast cooked by the teens at the Salvation Army Kroc Center or at our own dining room table on the 24th, Thanksgiving provides us with the opportunity to gather together, something we don't do often enough in this fast-paced culture.

"We gather together to ask the Lord's blessing." Yes, we will bow our heads to ask a blessing upon the food and upon those we love, both near and far. Hopefully amidst the clatter of dishes and the shouts of the Lions' fans (could they possibly beat Green Bay this year?), we will make time to articulate our gratitude for health, for strength, for daily bread, for our connections with each other, for our faith and for God's provision.

Out of the African-American gospel tradition, we'd often sing, "We have come this far by faith, leaning on the Lord." So true on this day of thanks. "Come, ye thankful people, come."

n JoAnn Shade is a major in the Salvation Army, serving at the Salvation Army Kroc Center in Ashland.

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